Mistaken Identity
by pingo1387
Summary: Nami's mysterious disappearance one night leads to a surprising discovery and a new adventure for the Strawhat crew. Cover by xxRIDDICKxx.
1. Two Strange Men! Nami Goes Missing?

**Takes place between Loguetown and entering the Grand Line**

* * *

><p>"Have you found her?" whispered the tall man to the short man.<p>

"Not yet," the short man whispered back, his eyes shut tight. "Wait . . . I see a new ship . . . I'll try to see inside it . . ."

"Hurry it up, will you?" the tall man said.

"Oh, be quiet," the short man snapped. "Let's see . . . I see four men in hammocks . . ."

"And clearly one of _them_ is the princess," the tall man said irritably. "Only report relevant things, you idiot!"

"Hush!" the short man said snippily. "I haven't fully examined the ship—oh!"

"Do you see her?" whispered the tall man eagerly.

"There's a young woman on a bed in another room," reported the short man. "A short-haired redhead!"

He opened his eyes, blinked a few times, and grabbed a photograph lying face-down next to him and his companion. He examined the photograph and grinned. "It has to be her! We found her, after so many years! The king and queen will be so pleased!"

"We must go tonight!" exclaimed the tall man in a loud whisper. "How close is this ship?"

The short man shut his eyes again and concentrated. "It appears to be . . . perhaps 30 or 40 kilometers away!"

"Let's hurry," whispered the tall man. "If we head out now, we can be back before dawn!"

"Perhaps the king and queen will give us a raise at last?"

"Perhaps!"

* * *

><p>The daybreak following this mysterious conversation, Sanji was finishing breakfast for everyone on the Going Merry.<p>

"And _voila_," he muttered to himself, sprinkling salt over the omelets. He stuck his head out the door and yelled "Nami-_swan_! Breakfast is ready! Hey, morons, that goes for you too!"

The men entered the kitchen almost immediately, Luffy naturally being the first. They sat down and waited impatiently for the meal.

"Y'know," Usopp said, "I was thinking, maybe we should start having a lookout at night. What if someone were to attack?"

"Good idea," Zoro said. "You can be the first."

"W-What!? But what if I get attacked!?"

"Then we will have suffered a great loss," Sanji said dramatically.

"Saaaanji!" Luffy whined. "We're hungry!"

"I refuse to serve the food until Nami-_swan_ shows up!" Sanji protested. "Where _is_ she? You don't think something happened to her, do you?"

"Oh, I'm sure she's fine," Usopp said. "Maybe she didn't hear you. I'll go get her . . ."

He rose and left the kitchen, heading for Nami's room below. A couple minutes later he returned, looking worried. "Um . . . she's not in her room, guys."

"What!?" Sanji yelled.

"Did you check anywhere else on the ship?" Zoro asked.

"Well—no, but—"

"Let's go!" Luffy yelled. "Search the ship for Nami! And then we can have breakfast!"

"Nami-_swaaaaan_!" Sanji yelled like a war cry.

* * *

><p>"Well, after about thirty minutes of searching every nook and cranny on this ship," Zoro said, "I think we can safely say that she's <em>not<em> here."

Sanji began crying. "Nami-_swan_ . . . where could you be, my darling?"

"Maybe . . . she decided to go back to her hometown after all?" Luffy suggested quietly.

Zoro and Sanji seemed to consider this, but Usopp shook his head.

"No," he said. "Both rowboats are still here. She didn't leave on her own."

"So she was kidnapped, maybe?" Zoro said with a shrug.

"If she was kidnapped," Sanji snarled with a fiery look in his visible eye, "I swear that I will not rest until I hunt down the villain who took her and beat the crap out of him!"

"This is exactly why we need a lookout!" Usopp exclaimed. "If someone had been standing watch last night, this wouldn't have happened!"

"Yeah, _Usopp_," Zoro said, "why weren't you standing watch? You could have prevented this."

"H-Hey! I only meant—"

"_Usopp, you damn bastard_ . . ." Sanji growled, glaring at Usopp murderously.

"Oh, come on!" Usopp yelled. "It's not my fault! Every one of you was asleep too!"

Sanji dissolved into tears again. "You're right . . . if only I had been more of a man; I could have prevented this . . . Nami-_swaaaaan_ . . ."

"We just have to go rescue her, right?" Luffy said. "If she was kidnapped, we just have to find the guy who did it and beat him up."

The others stared at him.

"Uh . . ." Zoro said. "Yeah, I guess."

"A stopped clock _is_ right twice a day," Usopp muttered.

"Okay!" Luffy said cheerfully. "So we just have to go to the nearest island and ask if they've seen her!"

"Yeah!" Usopp said. "To the nearest island we go!"

"To the nearest island," Zoro echoed.

. . .

". . . Um," Usopp said, "does anyone here know how to navigate properly?"

Luffy and Zoro shook their heads.

"Nami-_swaaaan_ . . ." Sanji wailed again, burying his face in his hands.


	2. Find Nami! Who Is This Princess?

**I'm back, after one week! By the way, that's how often I'll try to update this - every Sunday.**

* * *

><p>"How do we even read this thing?"<p>

The four men of the Strawhat pirates were clustered around a flat map of the globe in Nami's room (Sanji had allowed everyone to enter due to the emergency situation).

"I mean," Zoro continued, "we don't even know where the hell we are. How are we supposed to find where to go next?"

"We can narrow down where we are," Sanji pointed out. "First off, we're obviously not on the Red Line or the Grand Line; we're not in the North Blue, South Blue, or West Blue—"

"We _know_ we're in the East Blue," Luffy complained.

"Okay, _fine_," Sanji snapped. "I was going to say that we know we're in the area of Loguetown, the Calm Belt, and the Grand Line entrance. So . . ." he circled an area with his finger. "We're somewhere in this place."

"Great, we narrowed it down to less than a quarter of this world," Usopp muttered. "We're making _such_ progress here."

"Will you shut up?" Sanji said irritably. "We need to figure out what island my Nami-_swan_ could possibly be being held at! I bet she's locked up in some dungeon . . . shackled to a wall . . . b-being . . . tortured . . ." he started crying again. "Nami-_swan_!"

"Okay, he's useless now," Zoro said. "Back to the map . . . we know about where we are, but we don't really know which direction we're going in . . . shit, this isn't good at all."

"We could tell by the sun," Usopp suggested.

"Oh, yeah!" Luffy said. "It sets in the east, right?"

"West," Usopp said. "It sets in the west."

"It does not," Luffy protested.

"Yes, it does! Look, here's an easy way to remember it. You know how yeast—"

"I thought the sun set in the south," Zoro said, confused.

"Excuse me?" Sanji said, rejoining the conversation at last. "The sun sets in the north, doesn't it?"

"I'm telling you, it sets in the west!" Usopp protested.

"East!" Luffy said decidedly. "I'm the captain, and I say that the sun sets in the east!"

"Luffy, you can't control the sun," Zoro pointed out. "Anyway, it sets in the south."

"It sets in the _north_, morons!" Sanji said angrily. "Where the hell did you get the idea that it sets in the west or south?"

"Have any of you actually paid any attention _at all_ to the sun!?" Usopp said exasperatedly.

"Sure I have!" Luffy said. "It sets in the east!"

"North!"

"South!"

"It sets in the west, dammit!"

"Usopp," Sanji said, "you clearly have no idea what you're talking about. Perhaps you have amnesia about your childhood teachings?"

"I don't have amnesia about anything!" Usopp snapped. "I'm the great Captain Usopp! I don't _get_ amnesia!"

"Well, you could hardly help it if you _did_ get amnesia, isn't that right!?"

"I bet I could!"

"Bet you couldn't!"

"Bet I could!"

"Couldn't!"

"Could!"

"No, you damn couldn't!"

"I'll make you a bet!" Usopp declared. "I bet that I _won't_ get amnesia within the next . . . three years!"

"200 beris sound good!?"

"Deal!"

They glared at each other for a moment more.

"We haven't had breakfast yet," Zoro pointed out. "I'm pretty damn hungry."

"Hey, so am I!" Luffy said, sounding surprised. "Sanji, give us breakfast!"

"Oh, fine," Sanji said. "But it's right down to business after that."

* * *

><p>"See?" Usopp said, holding a compass and standing outside. "I <em>told <em>you it sets in the west."

"Fine, you were right," Zoro snapped. "So we're facing north."

"It's good to know, right?" Luffy asked. "We don't wanna accidentally go into the Grand Line the wrong way."

"That's _not_ the point, but sure," Sanji said. "Let's head back to the map . . ."

After heading back downstairs and studying the map a while longer, they concluded that there was only one island where the kidnappers could have come and gone in one night: Kopenchagi Island.

"It's really close," Sanji said. "It shouldn't take too long to get there."

"So let's go!" Luffy said cheerfully. "We can row there!"

After much arguing and fighting, Luffy and Zoro took one row while Usopp and Sanji took the other. They began rowing towards their destination, Usopp checking the compass every two minutes to make sure that they were still on target.

Soon enough, they reached the port of an island. After dropping the anchor, they rolled up the sail, jumped onto the dock, and looked around.

"Hey, sir," Zoro said, stopping someone who looked like a guard, "mind telling us where we are?"

"Did you just dock your ship there?" the guard asked, ignoring his question.

"Uh, yeah. So where—"

"You realize," he (the guard) said, "that docking at that particular port is strictly forbidden except for cargo ships. Is that a cargo ship?"

"No, but—"

"I'm going to have to fine you 1000 beris, then," the guard said, taking out a pad of paper. "Each. So . . . let's see . . . 4000 beris total."

"We'd like to pay, sir, but we don't have any money!" Usopp said, the first part being a lie and the second part being the truth.

"I guess I have to just arrest you then, huh?" the guard sneered. Before anyone knew what was happening, they were surrounded by other guards and handcuffed.

"You can either go straight to jail," the first guard said as he led the captive pirates down the street, "or you can plead your case to the princess—who, as it happens, has just returned after many years."

"A princess?" Sanji asked hopefully.

"We'll go to the princess," Luffy said. "I bet she'll let us go. If she doesn't, I'll just beat you guys up."

"This is actually good," Usopp whispered to the others. "If we can talk to this princess, we can ask for her help in finding Nami."

"Excellent!" Sanji whispered happily. "Oh my Nami-_swan_, you will be freed from your prison soon!"

The tied up Strawhats and the guards reached the palace soon, which was in the center of the city. The first guard knocked on the door and a female voice inside said "Come in!"

The huge double doors swung open, pulled by guards on the other side.

"Bow your heads," hissed one of the guards with the Strawhats. "Be respectful to the princess!"

The four obediently bowed their heads, playing along in hopes that it would help their case. Usopp had to force Luffy's head down and Sanji was muttering a string of curses under his breath.

They were led to the foot of a dais, where they were told to kneel in respect. The guards stepped back and all was silent.

Finally, the same female voice said "You may lift your heads."

The four Strawhat men looked up towards the princess. Usopp gasped dramatically, Luffy grinned widely, Sanji cried out with joy, and Zoro smirked in a pleased way.

The princess was wearing a lovely pale blue dress that flowed down to her ankles and hung off her wrists. Encircling her short orange hair was a thin silver diadem. Her face, decorated with makeup, was heart-shaped, and her eyes were a lovely shade of brown.

"Nami-_swan_!" Sanji exclaimed. "Oh my darling, how I have longed to see your beauty again!"

"What're you doing here, Nami?" Luffy asked happily. "We were worried!"

"Let's go back to the ship already," Zoro said. "C'mon."

"Nami?" Usopp asked.

"Silence!" said the princess suddenly and commandingly. She rose from her seat and spoke in whispers with a tall man on her right. After this whispered conversation, she turned back to the Strawhats and declared "Take them to the dungeons!"

"What!?" Luffy yelled. "Nami, it's us!"

"What the hell!?" Zoro yelled.

They were gagged by guards and dragged roughly down to the dungeons, where they were thrown into a jail cell and their gags were removed.

"You can stay down here," said the guard roughly, "until the princess decides what to do with you."

And he left the room without another word.

"Oh, come on!" Usopp complained. "Why did Nami do that?"

"Maybe _she_ has amnesia," Zoro said.

Luffy shrugged. "I don't think she does."

"Why not?"

"Because."

"Because what?"

"Just because."

They sat in silence for around ten minutes. Just as Usopp opened his mouth, they heard a door open and footsteps approaching. The princess and the tall man appeared outside their cell. The door was open and the princess stepped in with the tall man.

"Leave us," she said to the tall man. "I will make sure that they won't hurt me. Return to your post."

The tall man bowed and left, closing the cell door behind him. The princess waited until she heard the door shut behind him before quietly sitting down on a bench.

She looked up at the four Strawhats and a smile spread across her face. "Guys," she said happily, "I'm so glad you're here!"


	3. Nami Explains! A Favor Is Asked!

"Nami, it _is_ you!" Luffy yelled.

"Nami-_swan_!" Sanji exclaimed.

"To be honest, I'm surprised," Nami said, brushing back a lock of hair. "I didn't think you all would make it here so soon!"

"Well, it was a long and difficult journey," Usopp said, "but with the help of the great Captain Usopp, we managed to find you. I remember the Sea Kings—"

"What're you doing here?" Luffy interrupted. "Why do these guys think you're a princess?"

"You have a _lot_ of explaining to do," Zoro muttered.

"I know, I know," Nami sighed. "It's a long story. You know, if we had a lookout or something, this probably wouldn't have happened."

"That part is Usopp's fault," Sanji said. ("Hey!") "Carry on, Nami-_swan_! How did you come to be in this position?"

"Well . . ."

* * *

><p>The tall man and the short man reached the ship at last in their tiny rowboat. The tall man brought forth rope from underneath his cloak, tied a lasso, and threw it up the side of the ship, successfully hooking the end of the railing.<p>

He and the short man climbed the rope and quietly set foot on the deck. The short man pointed to a door just ahead of them around the main mast. The tall man nodded and both strode towards it. The short man opened the door very quietly and closed it after the tall man stepped in.

They looked around. By the dim light coming from the door cracks, they could see that the room was some kind of storage area. The tall man hit the short man on the head. The short man rubbed his head and indignantly pointed towards a trapdoor on the floor. The tall man nodded and quietly opened it up. The short man descended first and the tall man came soon after, leaving the trapdoor open for an easy exit.

The tall man pointed towards the bed questioningly. The short man nodded. The tall man swiftly approached the bed and scooped up Nami, who had been lying on it. He carried her bridal-style up the stairs and through the trapdoor, the short man close behind.

As he passed through the trapdoor, the tall man accidentally bumped Nami's legs on the edge. She stirred awake and looked around.

"Hey!" she exclaimed. "What the hell is going on!?"

"Forgive us, my lady," whispered the short man, taking out a small bottle and a handkerchief. He doused the handkerchief in the liquid from the bottle and pressed it to Nami's nose. She struggled, but couldn't help breathing in the fumes; her eyes closed and she went limp. The short man stowed the bottle and cloth back inside his cloak.

The short man carefully descended the rope; the tall man lowered the sleeping Nami and the short man positioned her within the rowboat in the most comfortable position possible. The tall man slid down the rope, unhooked it from the railing, seized the oars, and began rowing.

Once they were a good distance away from the ship, the short man spoke. "That was much easier than expected, don't you think?"

"Mm," muttered the tall man. "I hope the princess is okay. It didn't seem like she was being tortured, at any rate . . ."

"If we find out that those men were harming her," the short man said, "we can always find them again and have them killed."

"Yes, that's true," the tall man said. "Do me a favor and shut up now; your voice is annoying when I'm trying to row."

The short man stared at him. Then he opened his mouth and began singing at the top of his lungs. "_GATHER UP ALL OF THE CREW~, TIME TO SHIP OUT B—_"

"HEY!" the tall man yelled. "Shut up, you idiot, you'll wake the princess!"

The short man sighed. "And you say _my_ voice is annoying."

"You've got something on your nose," the tall man said.

"What—really?"

"Yeah, right there."

"I got it," the short man muttered, taking out his handkerchief. He rubbed his nose with it and managed to say "Oh, damn," before falling unconscious.

"Huh, it worked," the tall man muttered, grinning. "Idiot."

When Nami finally opened her eyes, the sunlight could barely be seen over the horizon. She shrieked when she realized that the tall man and the short man were standing over her, staring.

"Oh, good," the short man said. "You're awake!"

"What—" she said, looking around. She was lying on a small, old bed, which was in a fairly small and dimly lit room. An identical bed was on the opposite side.

"What the _hell_ is going on!?" she yelled angrily, glaring at the two. "Did you two kidnap me!? Oh, when Luffy gets here, he's gonna kick your—"

"Please, your highness, calm down!" the tall man beseeched. "We have liberated you from your captors and brought you home!"

"Captors?" she said, confused. "Your highness? What the hell are you talking about?"

"My lady," the short man said, "allow me to refresh your memory. When you were merely nine years old, you were playing with your friends in the street (as allowed by the king and queen) when a group of brutish thugs kidnapped you and took you away from the island!"

"You must have gotten me confused with someone else," Nami said exasperatedly. "I haven't been kidnapped by anybody except you two, and I am _certainly_ not a _princess_!"

"Oh, my lady," said the tall man concernedly, "I believe that you must have amnesia!"

The short man brought out a photograph. "Does this seem familiar?"

Nami grabbed the picture and studied it. It showed a young girl of perhaps six or seven years, wearing a pink dress and smiling happily into the camera. Her hair hung down to her shoulders and was almost the exact shade that Nami's was.

"Sure, she looks like me," Nami snapped, throwing the photograph back, "but that proves nothing! Lots of people look alike!"

"Princess Erika, please cooperate!" the tall man pleaded. "I know those ten years must have been hard for you, but your troubles are over!"

"My _name_ is _Nami_!" she yelled.

"Please, your highness, you must come to see the king and queen," the tall man said, offering her his hand. "They have fallen very ill and are desperate to see their daughter again."

Nami hesitated.

"Oh, fine," she snapped finally. She slapped his hand away and got up herself. "Where the hell is this, anyway?"

"We're in the palace, of course," the short man said. "This is mine and his room."

They opened the door and allowed Nami to step through first. The hallway outside was rather stunning, draped in red and gold tapestries and with several lit torches lining the walls.

"The king and queen are down this way," the tall man said, taking the lead with the short man next to him. "They are resting at the moment. Say, princess, do you remember us at all?"

Nami growled.

"Very well," the tall man said quickly. "My name is John."

"And I am Larry," said the short man.

"Nice to meet you, and all that," Nami said. "_My_ name is Nami."

John and Larry looked at each other and sighed.

The three eventually reached large and ornate double doors. Larry raised a fist and knocked three times. A weak voice inside said "Come in."

They entered to a large and heavily decorated room. Against the far wall was a huge bed upon which rested two people—a middle-aged man and woman.

John, Larry, and Nami approached the bed. John and Larry knelt respectfully by the side.

"Your majesties," John said. "King Hiram and Queen Pamela, we have wonderful news."

"We have found the princess," Larry continued. "Your daughter has been found! Princess Erika, please step forward!"

Nami sighed and moved closer. The king and queen looked at her.

"Um . . . hi," she muttered.

"Is it really you?" Queen Pamela whispered. "Oh, my sweet baby girl . . ."

"You've come home," King Hiram said softly, staring at her. "You're back."

Nami hesitated, and then smiled. "That's right, I'm back. I'm sorry I was away for so long."

The queen started crying. "Oh, Erika . . ."

"Your majesties, if you please," Larry said, "we shall instruct the princess in proper monarch rule for the time being. She shall take power until you are fit to rule once more."

"Please," the king said, nodding slightly with a faint smile. John and Larry nodded and stood.

"Come now, Princess Erika," John said. "We must begin."

The three left the room, leaving the monarchs to rest.

"I promise that this will not take long," Larry promised Nami as they walked down the hallway. "We simply need to give you the run-down with being the ruler of a kingdom, and of course—" he looked her up and down. "—Give you some . . . finer things to wear."

"Okay, stop right there," Nami said, halting her movement. "First off, my clothes are _fine_; they're some of the latest stuff from Loguetown, for your information. Second, I am _not_ this Princess Erika you're talking about."

Larry and John looked at each other. "My lady . . . you're absolutely sure?" John said sadly.

Nami nodded. "However . . ."

"However?" Larry asked eagerly.

"_However_, you guys seem to be in a bit of a crisis here, with no monarchy to rule the kingdom. Is that right?"

They nodded.

"Now, those guys that were with me on the ship?" Nami said. "Knowing them, they'll get here eventually. So the deal is this: I'll take this position as _Princess Erika_ until they show up. When they do, I'm taking off with them and leaving the crown behind. Also, you have to pay me 1,000,000 beris."

"Of course, of course!" exclaimed John happily. "Oh, my princess, thank you!"

"Do _not_ call me princess," Nami snapped. "Now, you were saying something about finer things to wear?"

* * *

><p>". . . so they gave me a quick tutorial in being a princess, forced me to wear this stupid dress and tiara and makeup, and here we are," Nami finished.<p>

"Nami-_swan_, you look absolutely _stunning_ in that dress!" Sanji cried, his visible eye becoming a heart.

"It's not my style or color," Nami complained.

"Well, I've got a question," Zoro said. "Why the hell did you throw us down here?"

"So that we could talk privately," Nami said. "It was a spur-of-the-moment thing. Plus, this way you guys can't destroy anything big."

"What makes you think we'd destroy something?" Luffy asked, frowning.

". . . I'm just going to ignore that one," Nami muttered. "Look, here's the thing, guys . . . those two, Larry and John? I don't trust them. I'm not sure that they'd let me go with you even though you're here now, and I'll probably end up just stealing the money from them."

"You're cold!" Usopp exclaimed.

"So I have a favor to ask all of you," Nami continued. "I need you guys to go out and find the real princess!"


	4. A Deal Is Made! Setting Sail!

"Okay," Luffy said without hesitation.

"Don't just say 'okay'!" Usopp protested. "Nami, what do you mean?"

"What do you _think_ I mean?" she said exasperatedly. "If the real Princess Erika is out there and still alive, you guys can find her, bring her back here, and then we can go!"

"Great, where is she then?" Zoro asked.

"Well, that's up to you guys to find out, right?" Nami said.

"I'll do _anything_ to get you back, Nami-_swan_~!" Sanji cried.

"B-But she might not even be in the East Blue!" Usopp said. "She could be in any one of the Blues, or even on the G-Grand Line—"

"Then that's your problem, isn't it?" Nami said, smirking.

"I like this side of Nami-_swan_ too," Sanji crooned.

"Shut it for a minute," Zoro muttered to Sanji. "Luffy, what do you think?"

"I already said we'll go," Luffy said. "But . . . only if she's not in the Grand Line. I don't wanna go there without Nami."

"Thanks," Nami said, relieved.

"I still don't like this, but since no one can stop Luffy . . . I've got a question," Usopp said.

"Spit it out," Zoro said.

"How are we going to get anywhere without our navigator?"

There was a moment of silence.

"You guys handled it fine without me this morning, right?" Nami asked, frowning.

"Uh . . ." Zoro said.

"Sort of . . ." Sanji said, looking away.

"It is a problem, but I can give you guys some basic tips," Nami offered. "The East Blue is normally a pretty easy sea to sail on, unlike the Grand Line—or so I've heard. Does anyone have some paper and a pencil?"

Usopp handed over the two things to her. She knelt on the ground and poised the pencil over the paper; the others crowded around her.

"First off," she said, writing as she spoke, "The sun sets in the west—"

"We know," the other four said together.

"Oh," she said, surprised. "Um, okay. Next, here are some diagrams for controlling the sails, just in case . . . Sanji-_kun_, Usopp; I'll leave this part up to you two."

"You can count on the great Captain Usopp!" Usopp exclaimed. "I shall direct Merry to the best of my ability—which, of course, is the highest possible ability in the world!"

"You can count on me too, Nami-_swan_~!" Sanji cried.

"Why do _they_ get to control the sails?" Luffy complained.

Nami shoved the diagrams at him. "Do you understand these?"

Luffy studied them for perhaps half a second. "Nope," he declared proudly.

"Exactly."

She eventually finished giving them tips; giving the paper back to Usopp, who stored it in his shoulder bag, she stood and said "I'll go tell those two what's happening. You four come along."

Nami pushed open the cell door and strode out, the others following.

"Nami-_swan_," Sanji said as they walked, "Do I have your divine permission to call you Princess Nami~?"

"Never call me that again," she growled.

* * *

><p>Back in the throne room, the men of the Strawhat crew stood respectfully by while Nami explained the idea to Larry and John.<p>

"So you see," she finished, "this would be in the best interest of everyone. I get to leave with my crew and you get your princess back. Do we have a deal, gentlemen?"

The two looked at each other—Larry looked up while John looked down.

"Very well," said John at last. "We have a deal, Princess Erika—er, Princess Nami."

Nami growled at him. "Do not _call_ me that . . ."

"Thanks, you two," Sanji said. "Do you have any clues for us to start with? Any place we can start looking?"

"I have a picture of the princess," Larry offered. He withdrew said photograph from his cloak and handed it to the Strawhats. They passed it around and studied it.

Zoro whistled. "She really does look like you, Nami."

"Shut it," Nami snarled.

"Okay, orange hair, brown eyes . . ." Usopp muttered to himself. "And her name is Erica?"

"No, _Erika_," John corrected, "with a 'k'."

"Oh, okay," Usopp said, nodding. Then he frowned. "Wait—"

"So where is she?" Luffy asked.

"All we know is that she was kidnapped ten years ago," Larry said sadly. "Oh, my poor princess, how you must be suffering . . ." he began wailing.

John smacked him. "Get a grip. Yes, she was kidnapped by some thugs when she was nine."

"How many were there?" Zoro asked.

"Only one, of course," John said in surprise.

It was Larry's turn to smack his partner. "Not the princess, idiot! I think there were maybe five or seven bandits. They sailed in the direction of the rising sun . . . well, that's all we know. We naturally attempted to give chase, but with the time it took to assemble a crew, they were long gone."

"Hang on," Nami said, frowning. "I just thought of something—how _did_ you two find out where I was? That's a bit creepy, if you ask me."

Larry grinned. "Your highness, I happen to possess the power of a Devil Fruit; the See-See Fruit, which allows me to see anything happening within a 50-kilometer radius. Of course, I can only see; I cannot hear, smell, or feel . . . I ate this fruit only a year ago, which is why I have not used it earlier to find the princess."

"So in other words, she's over fifty kilometers away from here?" Zoro asked.

Larry nodded.

"T-That seems really far," Usopp whimpered. "Are we really gonna be okay?"

"Adventure!" Luffy yelled happily. "Let's get going, guys! You wait for us, Nami!"

Nami grinned. "Don't take too long."

Larry and John led the Strawhats out of the palace and to the docks. Merry had thankfully not been seized yet, so the pirates were allowed to climb aboard and set sail.

"To the princess!" Luffy declared, pointing in the direction they were headed.

"To the princess!" The others echoed.

. . .

"So which way do we go?" Usopp asked.

"They said that the thugs went to the east, right?" Sanji said. "We'll start there."

Luffy looked up at the sun and then pointed towards the east. "To the princess! Oh, Sanji, I'm hungry. Can we have lunch?"

"Fine," Sanji said. "It's about time for lunch, anyway."

"I want meat!"

"I want fish!"

"I'll have booze."

"What about to eat?"

"Nothing to eat, just booze."

"You can't have just booze for lunch . . ."


	5. Land! Where is the Trader?

**Yo~! I apologize for not updating the last two weeks! My reason for this is that I had another story that required being updated both Sundays and I was finishing up another story. **

**Speaking of schedules, this story will now be updated on Saturdays. For more information, please look at the second-to-last entry of my profile.**

* * *

><p>A day had passed and not a single island had come into view. Luffy had stopped pointing towards whichever direction they were headed in and shouting "To the princess!", Usopp and Sanji had been nervously checking the diagrams and adjusting the sails every hour or so, and Zoro had mostly been drinking and lifting ridiculous amounts of weight.<p>

Finally, Usopp lazily looked towards the horizon and spotted an island a ways off. He jumped, turned around, and yelled "Land ho!"

The others came running out. Luffy saw the island and said "Hey, I'm the captain! I get to say land ho!"

"So say it," Zoro muttered.

Luffy grinned and pointed towards the island. "Land ho!"

Usopp and Sanji were already adjusting the sails. Luffy jumped up onto the figurehead and started bouncing up and down in anticipation. Zoro leaned against the railing and pretended not to be interested.

Within the next hour, they had docked at the island. On the surface, it seemed to be normal—a quiet town, peaceful villagers, and nothing strange or upsetting happening.

The Strawhats dropped the anchor, furled the sails, and got off the ship—Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji jumped off, while Usopp unrolled the ladder and climbed down.

"Maybe we should have someone stay and guard the ship," Usopp said as they stood on the dock. "I mean . . . just to be on the safe side?"

"Great, you stay then," Sanji said.

"No!" Usopp protested. "I was thinking more like you or Zoro!"

"So you want one of us to stay on the ship," Zoro said, "and you to have one less bodyguard?"

". . . You . . . make a good point," Usopp muttered.

"I'm sure it'll be fine anyway," Sanji said with a shrug. "Merry's kind of a small ship; I doubt people would think there's anything worth stealing aboard."

"Hey! Don't insult Merry!" Usopp snapped.

"He wasn't being insulting, he was stating a fact," Zoro pointed out.

Sanji grabbed the back of Luffy's shirt just as the latter was trying to run off. "And where do you think _you're_ going?"

Luffy looked back, annoyed. "I'm gonna go find the princess."

"Not without us, you're not."

"Why?"

"For one thing," Sanji said, "I have the picture. For another, you'll get lost if you go off by yourself."

Luffy muttered something, but stayed behind with the others.

Their first stop was a seedy-looking bar. When they walked in, not many inside glanced up. Almost everyone looked rather shady and suspicious. They approached the barman, a large bald man with an eye patch over his right eye cleaning out a glass with a filthy rag. He looked at them and muttered "You want somethin', kids?"

"If you don't mind us asking," Sanji said politely, "how long have you been working here?"

The barman shrugged. "Dunno. Fifteen, twenty years . . . lost track a while ago. What's it t'you?"

Sanji displayed the picture of the young princess. "Did this girl ever pass through her? It would've been about ten years ago, and she was probably with some folks like the kind around here." He glanced about the bar.

The barman barely gave the picture a glance. "How the hell should I know?" he growled. "I don't make it a habit to remember every face that comes through, unlike the _Trader_ a couple blocks over."

"Trader?" Sanji said interestedly. "Could you point us in the direction of this trader?"

The barman didn't answer Sanji right away. Instead, he looked closely at Luffy. "I don't remember many people, but you look familiar, lad. You famous or somethin'?"

Luffy grinned. "Yeah, I'm famous! I just got a bou—"

Usopp slapped a hand over his mouth and hissed "Luffy, shut up! Don't go around telling people you have a bounty!"

"Luffy?" The barman said loudly. "As in Monkey D. Luffy?"

The bar grew quiet and everyone turned to stare at the man in the straw hat.

"This isn't good," Usopp whimpered.

"Monkey D. Luffy!?" Someone yelled, standing up. "You goddamn _bastard_! I was the record-holder for highest bounty in the East Blue before _you_ came along! Had a good solid 21 mil! But then _you_ come out of nowhere with a _30 mil_ bounty and no one knows who I am anymore!"

Luffy frowned. "What? I don't care about that. It isn't my fault anyway."

The angry man threw a dagger at him. Luffy ducked and it hit the mirror behind the barman.

"Hey now, calm down!" the barman yelled. "You start anythin', I'm gonna chuck your ass outta here myself, ya dig!?"

"You don't look like much," sniggered another man, standing and flipping a pistol around in his hand so that it pointed towards Luffy. "I may be a criminal, but I ain't well known 'round these parts. I could turn you in to the Marines and no one there'd squabble."

Luffy laughed. This seemed to infuriate the two men even more and they started approaching; the first one had produced two more daggers and the second was loading his pistol.

"Luffy, you wanna take these guys?" Zoro muttered, clearing his swords.

Luffy shook his head. "I'm good. I just wanna get Nami back, so let's go."

"You guys go on, then," Sanji said. "I'll stay and take them out."

"Make that two of us," Zoro said. "I'd like to get some exercise."

The barman had decided to hide underneath the counter.

Luffy shrugged. "Okay, go ahead. Usopp and I'll wait outside."

Usopp didn't protest, so the two headed outside. For the next minute, crashes, slashing, and bangs could be heard from inside the bar. Sanji and Zoro eventually walked out without a scratch on them.

"Done," Zoro said. "Those guys were wimps."

"Of course," Usopp said, "you were only able to defeat them because I, the great Captain Usopp, was sending you mental waves of encouragement! How did I accomplish this, you ask? It is no easy feat! To do such a thing takes years of training . . . it begins by hiking up a mountain, oh, but not just any mountain! The mountain you choose must be—"

"He said that the trader was a couple blocks away, right?" Sanji said. "Hey!" he said, stopping a passerby. "Could you tell us which way to go to see the trader?"

The person made a face as if disgusted. "What kind of people _are_ you?" he snapped. "Wanting to see the _Trader_ . . . honestly, that man is the lowest of the low, I swear, I mean besides the people who do business with him—"

"We _asked_ you which way to go," Zoro growled, seizing the front of the man's shirt.

The man whimpered. "F-Fine, that way," he said, pointing down the street. "You there to _buy_ or _sell_?"

"Why do you care?" Usopp asked, a notably brave action for him.

The man looked away angrily. "This used to be a peaceful town before the Trader came along, more than ten years ago. Now he attracts all kinds of seedy folk . . ." He glared at the four. "Just wondering because if you were gonna _sell_, I wanted to say sorry to whichever one of you it is."

Zoro let him go and the man quickly went off, glancing over his shoulder at the pirates.

"That was weird," Sanji said at last.

"Well, we know where to go," Luffy said. "So let's go!"

He ran off before anyone could stop him.


	6. Trader Found! Where Do the Stairs Lead?

**I apologize in advance for the short chapter.**

* * *

><p>Having finally caught up with Luffy, the group made their way down the street. As they did, they noticed that there were fewer and fewer people along the road, as if the area was avoided by the townsfolk.<p>

"That's weird," Usopp muttered, looking around. "I-Is there something wrong with this place? Are there traps? Oh god, there're traps, aren't there!?"

"Calm down," Sanji said. "There aren't any traps."

"How do you know!?"

"I don't."

Usopp whimpered.

"This is it, isn't it?" Zoro asked, stopping in front of a small and filthy wooden shack. The others stopped too and saw the sign hanging on the door, reading THE TRADER.

"Must be," Sanji said with a shrug.

Luffy immediately strode forward and pushed open the door. "Hello?" he yelled. "We're looking for Nami—I mean, a princess!"

The others came in and Zoro smacked Luffy. "Be _patient_. We don't even know if this guy is here."

The single room held a wooden counter with a door behind it and two seats near the door. Luffy took a breath and yelled "Hello?" again.

This time, there was a _click_ and a greasy-looking man rose up from behind the counter. He was balding, had an upturned nose, and wore an expensive suit.

"Hello, hello," he said smoothly. "How may I help you?"

"Are you the trader?" Sanji asked.

"I am indeed," the Trader confirmed. "You all seem a little young . . . but no matter. Are you here to buy or sell?"

"We don't wanna buy or sell anything," Luffy said. "We're looking for someone."

"A girl," Usopp added. "Uh, if she was here, it would've been about ten years ago . . . brown eyes, orange hair?"

The Trader frowned. "Oh come now, if she was here ten years ago, she's long gone."

"_Obviously_," Zoro snapped. "Just tell us if she was here."

The Trader sighed and took out a book from behind the counter. He opened it and started flipping through it—based on the flashes of photos, dates, and notes that the Strawhats saw, it was some kind of registration book.

"Is this her?" the Trader asked, flipping around the book and pointing to a picture of a young girl with orange hair and a pink dress. She looked frightened in the photograph.

Sanji took out his photo and compared it. "Yep, that's the one," he said. "Good to know she came through here."

"Hang on," Usopp muttered, peering at the notes next to the photo. "Why does it say 'Sold by Telly' and 'Bought by Rico'?"

The others leaned in, reading the notes. "Yeah, that's weird," Zoro said, looking at the Trader. "What's that about?"

The Trader looked surprised. "Isn't it obvious?"

"If it _were_, we wouldn't be _asking_, now would we?" Sanji said, irritated.

The Trader shrugged. "It means that this property—" he gestured to the photo. "—was sold to me by a man named Telly and bought from me by a man named Rico."

There was a moment of silence.

"Property?" Zoro asked at last.

The Trader seemed even more surprised. "Are you telling me that you didn't know what kind of place this was?"

"We were only told that you kept track of everyone who passed through," Sanji said, his voice trembling slightly with anger. "No one told us that you were running a _slave trade_."

"That's not my fault," the Trader said with a shrug. "I don't exactly advertise my business."

"What's a slave trade?" Luffy muttered to Usopp.

"It's where people are bought and sold to be used as slaves," Usopp whispered back. "As in they have to work for other people without getting paid and they're treated like trash most of the time."

Luffy frowned.

"What's behind that door?" Zoro asked, pointing to the door behind the counter.

"Hold on just one moment," the Trader snapped. "If you're not here to buy or sell, you'll have to leave."

"I don't take orders from you," Luffy said. He went behind the counter, pushing the Trader aside, and he pulled open the door to find a flight of stairs going down, apparently underground. The others followed and the Strawhats headed downstairs.


	7. Freeing the Slaves! A New Picture!

While Luffy, Usopp, and Zoro went down the stairs, Sanji stayed behind and held back the Trader from stopping them.

"I'll catch up as soon as I beat the shit out of this damn bastard," he called after them.

"Okay!" Luffy called over his shoulder.

The sound of kicking grew fainter as Luffy went down, Zoro following and Usopp clinging to Zoro's shirt.

Eventually they reached the bottom, where another door awaited. Luffy immediately pushed it open and stepped inside.

The room was lit by several torches on the walls. By this light, everyone could see that the room was mostly empty except for one important detail: There were five children, four girls and one boy, chained to the wall and wearing dirty rags. All of them looked forlorn and empty, simply staring at the ground.

Zoro and Usopp came in behind Luffy and stared at the scene. "_This_ is how slaves are treated!?" Usopp whispered in shock.

Two of the girls looked up and stared at the pirates as if waiting for something. When no one moved, they looked back down at the ground.

Sanji came down the stairs at last. "Hey," he said, "I took care of him. What's—"

He saw the room and froze. "That _bastard_," he growled. "Now I wish I had kicked him harder."

Luffy, without saying a word, turned and ran back up the stairs.

"Where's he going?" Usopp whimpered, staring after him.

Zoro and Sanji shrugged. Sanji approached one of the girls. "Hey, pretty lady," he said softly. "My name's Sanji. What's yours?"

The girl, who couldn't have been more than 15, flinched, lowered her eyes, and murmured "Vithya, sir."

Sanji smiled and reached out a hand. Vithya flinched again, but all Sanji did was pat her head. "You're going to be okay," he said softly.

She seemed very surprised. As Usopp followed Sanji's example and went to talk to another prisoner, there was the sound of running and Luffy came down the stairs, holding a handful of keys.

"I found these in that guy's desk," he explained. "Some of them probably unlock the cuffs, right?"

"Good thinking," Zoro said, surprised. He grabbed a few keys, strode over to the boy, and started trying them out. None of them unlocked the cuffs, so he tossed the keys to Sanji, who snatched them and started testing them out on Vithya's cuffs. A moment later there were two _click_s and the cuffs fell away. Vithya slowly lowered her arms and rubbed her wrists.

"Here," Sanji called to Usopp, tossing him the other keys. Usopp fumbled, caught them, and started testing them out on the cuffs. None of them worked, so he tossed them back to Luffy, who had already approached the third girl. He started trying out the keys on her cuffs and got one of them to work. Like Vithya, the girl—who had told Usopp that her name was Maureen—lowered her arms and rubbed her wrists.

Soon the rest were released as well. They didn't seem to know what to do; all of them just stared at the pirates.

"Well, come on already," Zoro said. "We're getting out of here."

"Excuse me, sir," said one of the girls timidly. "Are you taking all of us?"

"Yeah," Zoro said. "Right, Luffy?"

Luffy nodded.

The boy helped Maureen up and then bowed in the pirates' general direction. "We will be good for you, masters," he said quietly.

"Masters?" Usopp said, confused.

Sanji flicked his cigarette to the ground and stomped on it to put the flame out. "Listen, kid, we're not here to buy you. We're setting you free."

The boy looked up nervously, clearly confused.

"You don't have to be slaves anymore," Usopp said.

The girl that the boy had helped up said softly "I'm sorry, masters, is that a joke?"

"We're not joking," Luffy said. "And we're not your masters."

"Hang on," Zoro said. "Hey, kid, hold still."

The girl flinched, but closed her eyes and did what she was told. There was a _slash_ and a _clink_; when she nervously opened her eyes, she found that the chains around her legs were broken.

Zoro did the same for the others. They looked at him in awe.

Luffy turned to go up the stairs. "C'mon, everyone!" he called down. "Let's go!"

Usopp, Sanji, and Zoro guided the kids to and up the stairs. They came into the upper room and passed the Trader, who was lying beaten, bruised, and unconscious on the floor. Vithya began sobbing in relief and Sanji held her to comfort her.

Luffy was flipping through the book that the Trader had showed them earlier. "Hey," he said to the kids, shoving the book at them and pointing at the picture of young Princess Erika. "Do you guys know if this girl was ever down there with you?"

The kids looked at the picture. "I . . . I think so, sir," said the boy softly. "But . . . will you please go further in the book?"

Luffy started flipping through pages until the boy put a hand on one page. It showed a picture of a young woman who was clearly the same girl, only at least nine or ten years older.

"This lady was here a few weeks ago," he said quietly. "She said that she'd been a slave for ten years. I liked her and I was sad when she was bought again."

Usopp leaned over and tore the page out of the book. "Thanks, kid," he said cheerfully.

"Okay, Luffy," Sanji said. "What do we do with the kids?"

The children looked nervous again, as if expecting punishment.

"Calm down," Zoro said. "We won't hurt you."

They looked up at him in admiration and clung to his legs.

"I dunno," Luffy said. "But we should get them out of this place, right? How about we take them on the ship with us for now?"

"Fine, but they can't stay the night," Sanji said. "We won't have enough food or beds."

"Okay, you heard him," Usopp said to the kids. "We're gonna take you on our ship and we're gonna get you help, okay?"

They looked down, unsure of what to say or do.

"Let's go," Luffy said, marching out the door. Usopp, Sanji, and Zoro followed, the children still clinging to Zoro's legs.

* * *

><p><strong>By the way, the Trader's name is Steve.<strong>


	8. New Lead Found! Bring Them Home!

Soon after setting sail with the kids on board, they learned that the names of the other two girls were Stacey and Dana, and that the name of the boy was Chad. Sanji had announced that they would have lunch _al fresco_ and had set up a picnic blanket. He now came out bearing plates of sandwiches, thinly sliced vegetables, and glasses of booze for the men and water for the kids; it was amazing that he managed to hold it all without dropping anything.

"Here we are," he said cheerfully, setting everything on the picnic blanket and distributing the drinks. "_Bon appétit!_"

"Zoro's got a fan club," Usopp said with a laugh after a sip of booze. He indicated the kids, who were still crowded around Zoro.

"Oh, shut up," Zoro muttered, grabbing his drink and taking a swig. The kids stared at the sandwiches in front of them uncertainly.

"Hey, you kids can go ahead and eat," Sanji said as he prevented Luffy from taking all of the sandwiches. "They're not poisoned."

The kids still seemed uncertain. They looked at Zoro, who realized what they wanted and took a bite of his own sandwich, swallowing it without any problem. They then cautiously picked up their own food and started eating slowly.

"T-This . . ." said the boy Chad shakily, "this is really good, sir!"

The others nodded in agreement.

"Take time to savor it," Sanji said with a grin.

* * *

><p>Everyone finally finished off lunch; Sanji and Usopp cleared everything away and came back to discuss the current issue.<p>

"So what do we do with the kids, captain?" Sanji asked Luffy.

Luffy crossed his arms and frowned. "I dunno. Hey, guys, where are you from?"

"We're from the s-same place, sir," said Stacey after a moment's hesitation. "B-But I don't know where it is . . ."

"I think I know," offered Dana, the youngest one. "I remember when we got kidnapped and they were taking us away, the sun was behind us and it was morning."

"So we just gotta keep heading east," Zoro muttered after a moment's thought.

"Wait, you were kidnapped recently?" Usopp asked, confused.

The kids hesitated. "Well . . ." said Chad. "Kind of . . . we all got kidnapped separately. I was the first, I think . . . and that was about two months ago. Someone came and b-bought me about a month ago, but he brought me back and sold me again really quick."

"And then we got kidnapped too," Maureen said quietly. "The guy there was really mean. We didn't get much to eat."

Dana started to cry; Vithya went to comfort her.

"Calm down," Zoro said. "That guy's gone; we're gonna take you kids home now."

They looked at him with admiration again and hugged him around his legs.

"Oi, get off," he snapped.

"Hey, kid?" Usopp said to Chad. "You know that lady that you said you liked? The one with orange hair? Do you have any clue where she went?"

Chad thought carefully. "Um . . . I think the guy who bought her said something about Opale Island."

"Thanks," Usopp said gratefully. "Now we know where to head next."

"Let's go already!" Luffy exclaimed. "Usopp, Sanji, turn us to the east and let's head out!"

"Aye-aye, captain!" they exclaimed, and headed for the sails and rudder.

* * *

><p>By the time they reached an island, it was late afternoon. They found Zoro sleeping against the side of the ship, with the kids surrounding him, sleeping as well.<p>

Luffy laughed. "That's pretty funny!"

"Cute," Sanji said with a smirk. "Papa Three-Sword and his five kids."

Usopp snickered. He and Sanji went to dock the boat while Luffy woke up Zoro by hitting him on the head.

"What?" Zoro mumbled, yawning. "Morning already?"

Luffy laughed. "The sun's setting, Zoro! Never mind that, we're here!"

The kids slowly started to wake, rubbing their eyes and looking around. Vithya peeked over the railing and exclaimed "It's our island! We're home!"

The others stood and crowded around, trying to see the island.

"I can't wait to see mommy and daddy again!" cried Dana.

Usopp dropped the anchor and rolled out a rope ladder. Zoro, Luffy, and Sanji chose not to use it, instead jumping off of the side. The kids, imitating Zoro, climbed off of the side of the ship, where the three who had jumped down helped them out. In the end, Usopp was the only one who used the ladder.

"I don't know why I bother sometimes," he mumbled angrily.

After leaving the port area, the four pirates and the kids stopped at a street. "Hey," Zoro said, "can you guys find your way home from here?"

They looked around uncertainly. "I think we can ask someone for help, so . . ." Vithya trailed off.

"Hey!" Usopp yelled, waving to a merchant across the street. "Over here!"

The merchant left his stand and came over. "What's going on?" he said with a slight frown. "Who are—"

He noticed the kids and his eyes widened. "Vithya?" he asked. "Chad? Maureen? You're all safe!"

"Hi!" exclaimed Chad, hugging the man. "Can you help us get back home?"

"O-Of course," the merchant said, startled. "Oh, it's good to see you all . . . I'm glad you're okay. You four, thank you for—"

But when he looked up, the pirates had already departed.

* * *

><p>"Okay!" Luffy exclaimed, standing at the bow with one foot on the railing, pointing towards the setting sun. "For dinner! And Nami!"<p>

"Why is Nami second?" Usopp muttered.

"Guess I'll get started on dinner," Sanji said, rolling up his sleeves.

"I hope those kids'll be okay," Zoro said, looking back at the island.

"Awww," Usopp said in an exaggerated tone. "You're so sweet, Zoro-_kun_!"

Zoro glared at him. Usopp meekly stopped talking.

* * *

><p><strong>So, uh . . . if you didn't like this mini-arc with the kids, I'm sorry. To be honest, I'm not sure what I was thinking. But hey, they've got a lead on the princess.<strong>


	9. Back with Nami! Into the Town!

**I'm sorry that this chapter is very short. I thought we should take a break from those guys, I forget their names, to check on Nami, but I was lost for ideas.**

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><p>Nami sighed and adjusted her position in the throne yet again. "Just <em>what<em> am I supposed to do here?" she snapped. "The only people that have come in are my crew and that weirdo Outlook from Goa. Aren't there any _other_ duties as a monarch? I'm bored to death here."

"Of course there are many, Princess," John said, looking down at her from the left. "However, our kingdom is thankfully in a time of peace—relatively, anyway, considering that Erika has been missing for years."

"We are not at war," Larry clarified, looking up at her from the right. "Our current relations with neighboring countries are good, and there has been very little unrest in our nation as a whole for the past few years."

"Look, it's nice that you're all happy and friendly," Nami said, adjusting the silver tiara on her head. "And I'm not saying that I _want_ a war or anything, but honestly, I can't just be sitting on this throne all day."

"As a princess—one below the status of king and queen—not much is normally expected of you," John said patiently. "Even with you as the acting monarch, the king and/or queen's official signature must be put onto important documents; your signature alone would not suffice. If any neighboring countries have the need to discuss political matters, you'll be there do so, but in the meantime—"

"—I sit here and do nothing," Nami completed. "I don't know, aren't there any books around here? Maybe some maps to study?"

"Princesses don't study maps!" Larry exclaimed.

"I'm not a princess, _am_ I?" Nami retorted.

"Even so, my lady . . ." John mumbled.

"Fine," Nami snapped. She stood. "I'm going to go into town."

She began to head for the door, but Larry and John moved to stand in her way.

"Please, my lady, stay inside!" Larry beseeched.

"The last time you went into town, you were kidnapped!" John cried.

"Are you two _delusional_!?" Nami yelled. "That _wasn't me_!"

"Oh, right," Larry muttered. "At any rate, you should stay indoors—"

Nami shoved past them and went for the exit. "You two can come if you like, but I'm going into town."

Larry and John frantically hurried after her.

* * *

><p>"It's wonderful to see you've returned, Princess Erika!"<p>

"Princess Erika, how are you?"

"Good morning, my lady!"

"Are the king and queen well?"

Questions and well-wishes such as these were directed at Nami nearly everywhere she went. She awkwardly answered them with goods and they'll recovers and thanks while avoiding their gazes.

"Would you like to return to the palace, my lady?" John offered hopefully.

"_No_ thank you," she said. "It's a beautiful day and I'm not going to spend all of it indoors!"

They reached an open market, where a large group of people milled around, examining the various stalls and goods.

At some point, Nami lost Larry and John in the crowd. She shrugged this off and continued on her own, stopping occasionally to look at what someone was offering.

The crowd thinned out and Nami headed down a deserted street, thinking that she would make her way to the harbor to see if her crew had returned.

"Well, well," said a nasty-sounding voice. "Little girlie, all alone!"

Nami whipped around to see two rather ugly men step out of a side alley, leering at her.

"What do you want?" she said with a scowl.

"_What do you want?_" one of the men mocked. "Aw, look, she's got a little tiara! Playing princess, are we?"

"You're a nice catch, girlie," said the other man. "Whaddya think? Should we take her?"

"Yeah," giggled the first man. "Today's your lucky day, girlie! You get to be my wife!"

"Hey, she's gonna be _my_ wife!" protested the other.

"We'll share her!" said the first. He reached out for Nami with grubby hands; she backed away and quickly reached inside her dress, pulling out the pieces of her baton, which she snapped together and swung at their heads. She hit the one on the right, pushing him into the one on the left and knocking both out with a satisfying hollow _CLONK_.

"My lady!" yelled John, hurrying to her.

"I saw those two men harassing you!" yelled Larry, coming after John. "Get away from her, you brutish—"

They stopped when they saw the unconscious thugs on the street.

"Oh," said John.

Nami took apart her baton and stashed it back inside her dress. "You know what, I've had my fill of the town," she said calmly. "I think I'd like to head back to the palace now."


	10. A Vague Plan! To Opale Island!

**I suck so much I'm really sorry**

* * *

><p>"What a strange dream . . ." Sanji mumbled, sitting up while still half-asleep. "A blue-haired beauty and a talking reindeer . . ." he shook his head, waking himself up, and looked around. His crewmates were still sleeping; it seemed to be early morning. He climbed out of his hammock and went up the ladder, popping out onto the deck and heading for the kitchen to start breakfast.<p>

Not long after he had put the bacon in the pan, Luffy wandered in through the door. His eyes were barely open and he shuffled his feet. He made a beeline for the stove and rested his head on Sanji's shoulder.

"Sanji . . . food . . ." he mumbled, a thin string of drool trickling from the corner of his mouth.

"What—you're not even awake, are you!?" Sanji exclaimed. "Go sit at the table and wait. It's not ready yet."

"'Kay . . ." Luffy shuffled away and plopped into a chair, letting his head fall to the table. By the time Sanji had finished cooking, Luffy was fully awake and ready to eat.

"Is it ready now?" He asked eagerly. "Is it? I'm hungry!"

"Yeah, just a sec," Sanji said. He stuck his head out the door and yelled for Zoro and Usopp, after which he distributed the food out onto plates.

"Ah, that smells so good," Usopp sighed as he came through the door. "I'm hungry . . ."

Zoro came in soon after him, yawning and rumpling his hair.

After everyone had had their fill and Sanji had cleared away the dishes, the cook came to sit with the rest at the table.

"Okay, Usopp," he said. "Let's see that paper."

Usopp fished the piece from his pocket and laid it on the table. Everyone leaned in and examined the picture of the young woman with shoulder-length orange hair. It was clearly uncared for, as it hung limply and seemed greasy; her lightly tanned skin was a bit grimy as well. However, despite her unkempt appearance, Erika's eyes were bright as she looked at the camera.

"What a _beautiful_ young lady," Sanji sighed.

Luffy squinted at the paper. "I can't read it."

"You're looking at it upside-down, you realize that, right?" Usopp said. "Anyway, it says that she was . . . sold by Daniel and bought by Kevin."

"That page from earlier said that she was bought by Rico or someone, right?" Zoro said. "It sounds like she got passed around a lot."

"Don't say it like that," Sanji snapped. "She's not property."

"I didn't mean it like that," Zoro protested. "I just meant that—well, you know what I mean! She's been bought and sold a bunch!"

"She's _not_ property!" Sanji yelled.

"I'm just guessing what happened!" Zoro yelled back. "How would you say it!?"

"I don't know, but it'd sure as hell be nicer than what you're saying, moss-head!"

"Wha—Who the hell are you calling _moss-head_!? Do you want me to cut you!?"

"Bring it on, Neanderthal!"

The two began trading clashes and blows.

"G-Guys, calm down!" Usopp whimpered. "You'll hurt the ship!"

Luffy laughed. "Okay, so . . . we're going to Opale Island, and we're looking for the princess from a guy named Daniel."

"Yeah, that sounds right—no, wait, the guy's name is Kevin."

"Oh, okay."

Zoro and Sanji quit their battle and went back to the table, glowering at each other.

"Anyway, Luffy, you're right," Usopp said cheerfully. "We just need to go to Opale Island and find that asshole, and then we'll get the princess and bring her home!"

"Sounds like a plan," Zoro and Sanji said together. They glared at each other.

"Okay!" Luffy exclaimed. "Let's go!"

. . .

"Where's Opale Island?" Zoro asked.

Sanji sighed. "Great, now we're lost. Why didn't we ask at the last island?"

"I'll get the map," Usopp muttered, leaving the kitchen. He returned a minute later with the East Blue map and spread it out on the table.

They searched the area for a good five minutes before Sanji found the island. It was due east from where they were currently anchored.

"Shall we, captain?" Sanji said.

Luffy nodded. Sanji and Usopp ran outside to unfurl the sails while Zoro went to hoist the anchor.

"Set sail!" Luffy exclaimed. "To Opale Island! To the princess!"

"Aye-aye, captain!"


	11. So Close yet So Far! A Mysterious Note!

**[rolls around on ground]**

* * *

><p>A few hours passed before the Strawhats managed to dock at Opale Island. As usual, after Zoro had lowered the anchor, he, Luffy, and Sanji leapt off the ship onto the dock, while Usopp tossed down a ladder for himself.<p>

"Let's go!" Luffy exclaimed. He tried to run off but was stopped by Zoro's hand on his shoulder.

"We're sticking together," he said sternly.

Luffy pouted. "But wouldn't it be faster if we all went separately?"

The others considered this.

"Y'know, I think he's right," Usopp said. "How about we split into teams of two?"

"Yeah!" Luffy said. "Me 'n Zoro'll be a team!"

Zoro shrugged. "Sure. Usopp, Sanji, you guys look somewhere else."

"Okay, Sanji, you listen to any orders I give you," Luffy and Zoro heard Usopp saying as the teams split up. "First order: Call me 'Captain Uso'—"

"No."

"I've been on this crew longer than you!"

"Do you think that means I'm going to follow your orders . . . ?"

* * *

><p>It had been over an hour and Luffy's team had had no luck with finding the man named Kevin.<p>

"This is _boring_," Luffy whined as he and Zoro wandered down a street. "Where the heck is that Kevin guy?"

"Did you say Kevin?" said someone passing by.

"You know him?" Zoro asked quickly.

"I do," said the woman, smiling. "He's always so nice and friendly when I go to visit . . . if you're looking for him, he lives in that gray house over there." She pointed to it and waved farewell.

"Awesome, let's go!" Luffy exclaimed, running to the house with Zoro close behind.

Luffy pounded on the door. He and Zoro waited for a few minutes. They were about to turn and leave when someone opened the door.

"Hello," the man said with a friendly smile. "May I help you?"

"Are you Kevin?" Luffy demanded.

"My name is Kevin, yes," the man said, still smiling. "What is it?"

"We're with the Marines," Zoro said. "Uh—we were asked to wear civilian clothes today."

"What?" Luffy said, looking at Zoro. "We're not Marines."

Zoro glared at Luffy.

"Oh, wait!" Luffy said. "Right, we're Marines!"

"I see . . ." Kevin said slowly. "Come in, gentlemen."

He opened the door wider and Luffy and Zoro strode in. They sat on a couch and Kevin sat in a chair perpendicular to them.

"So what can I do for you two today?" he said, smiling.

"We're looking for Erika," Luffy said bluntly.

"Uh—yes," Zoro said. "We . . . got a report that she's missing and we think that . . . look, do you know where she is?"

"Erika?" Kevin said without the slightest change in expression. "I'm afraid I don't know anybody by that name."

"Aw, okay," Luffy said dejectedly. "Let's go."

He stood, but Zoro put a hand on his shoulder. "Can we search your house? I mean—not that we're—accusing you, but—uh, she might be on the run and have . . . snuck in without you noticing . . ."

The excuse sounded lame, even to Luffy, who frowned. Kevin, however, seemed to accept it after a moment. "Well, certainly. Take as much time as you need, gentlemen, though I'm positive that I have no one hiding in this house."

"Awesome, let's do it!" Luffy exclaimed. He ran off to some corner of the house. Kevin looked at Zoro.

"That man is the oddest soldier I've ever met," he commented.

"Yeah, he's pretty rowdy," Zoro said quickly. "The superiors can hardly keep him under control."

He too went to search through the house.

* * *

><p>It had taken them several minutes to search the house. Though they had opened every door, searched every human-sized nook, and even peeked outside around the house, they had seen no sign that Princess Erika had ever been there.<p>

"Thanks for helping," Zoro said as he and Luffy made to leave. "We'll look somewhere else."

"Good luck, gentlemen!" Kevin exclaimed, smiling. "May the gods smile upon you!"

He shut the door behind them.

Luffy kicked the ground. "She wasn't there . . . maybe Usopp and Sanji found something. Let's go back to the dock."

They headed back to the ship and saw Usopp and Sanji already there, milling around.

"Hey!" Zoro yelled. The two looked up and waved.

"Did you guys find anything?" Usopp asked hopefully.

"No," Zoro said. "You?"

Sanji shook his head. "Nothing."

"We found Kevin," Luffy said.

Sanji and Usopp stared at him.

"So . . ." Usopp said eagerly.

"But Erika wasn't there," Luffy finished. "Zoro and me searched the whole house and everything."

"Damn," Sanji muttered. "Oh, Princess Erika, where could you be . . . ?"

"You sure you searched the whole house?" Usopp asked skeptically. "I mean, everything?"

"Yeah!" Luffy exclaimed.

"Everything where someone could have been," Zoro said.

Usopp sighed. "What now?"

"Go back to the ship and rethink our plan?" Zoro suggested.

"Yeah," Luffy agreed.

The four started heading back, but Usopp suddenly said, "Zoro, wait . . ."

Zoro stopped. "What?"

". . . Start walking again."

Zoro started walking.

"Okay, stop."

"What kind of game are you playing!?"

"No, I heard something—I think you have something on your shoe," Usopp explained.

"Oh," Zoro said. He lifted his boot and checked. "What the . . . ?"

A white square of paper was stuck to his sole. He peeled it off and looked at it; his eyes widened.

"What is it?" Luffy said, coming around to look. "Wait . . ."

Sanji and Usopp came to look as well.

"If I picked this up in that guy Kevin's house," Zoro said, "then we need to go back there ASAP."

The piece of paper said, in shaky handwriting, 'BASEMENT OF HIS HOUSE HELP'.


	12. Finally Found! Set Sail!

**Well, I'm posting this a little bit late, but it's still Thursday where I live.**

**No, that was a lie. I'm pretty sure it's not Thursday anywhere at this point. Sorry for posting late.**

**Anyway, I'm going on vacation on the 11th for a couple weeks, so no new chapters until I get back. I'll still be available to reply to reviews/PMs.**

* * *

><p>"So if you stepped on it in that guy's house, then . . ." Usopp said. "She's really there!"<p>

"And _you_ two screwed up," Sanji added.

"Oh, shut up," Zoro snapped. "I don't know if she's really there or not, but—"

"He's already going," Usopp said quietly, pointing to where Luffy was running off with a battle cry.

"He's so high-maintenance," Zoro muttered. But he was grinning as he and the other two ran after their captain.

* * *

><p>Kevin looked up and went to answer the door. He had barely opened it when he was roughly shoved backwards by the door being pushed open. The four Strawhats burst into his house; Luffy seized Kevin by the shoulders and slammed him into the wall.<p>

"Where is she!?" he yelled.

Kevin blinked. "I don't know what you're talking about, Mr. Marine," he said politely. "You and your comrade already searched my house thoroughly—"

"Oh, for—we're not Marines, you moron, that was a lie!" Zoro snapped. "Now tell us where the girl is!"

"Yeah, or we'll beat you up!" Usopp exclaimed, hiding behind the open front door.

Sanji glanced over at him. "By 'we' you mean everyone but you?"

"I'm the backup."

"Right. Anyway . . ." Sanji planted a solid kick into Kevin's stomach, making him cough. "You wanna do this the _hard_ way or the _easy_ way?"

"This is taking too long!" Luffy exclaimed suddenly. He let go of Kevin's shoulders and ran off to another part of the house.

"I-I'll come!" Usopp exclaimed. He ran after Luffy; Zoro and Sanji turned to Kevin, who glared at them.

"Why do you want that bitch anyway?" he sneered, all innocence and smiles gone from his face. "She's not even good at doing what I tell her. I've had to beat her so many times for disobedience. I don't know why I bought her in the first—"

He stopped talking at this point. This was probably because Sanji had kicked him directly in the face and Zoro had punched him in the chest.

As he slumped to the ground, Zoro glanced at Sanji. "Keep an eye on him, will you? I'll go help those two."

"Yeah," Sanji said, planting a foot on Kevin to keep him down. "He's not going anywhere."

* * *

><p>"I still don't know where she is!" Luffy exclaimed, frustrated. He had overturned just about everything he could overturn, and there was no sign of the missing princess. They were currently checking the bedroom again.<p>

"Yeah, we've looked _everywhere_," Usopp complained. "Except for under the rug, and there's no way she's there."

Zoro glanced at the rug and lifted it up.

"Oh, come on, Zoro, like a person could really hide under a rug—"

"I dunno about that," Zoro said. "But what if there was a trapdoor?"

"Well, in that case—what?"

He and Luffy leaned over to see a door in the floor.

"Ha!" Usopp exclaimed. "It was just as I had predicted!"

"Yeah, yeah," Zoro muttered, lifting the door to find a flight of stairs going down.

"Let's go!" Luffy yelled, leaping down the door and promptly falling head-over-heels down the stairs.

"Slow down, you'll hurt yourself!" Usopp cried, following Zoro down the hole.

At the bottom, they found themselves in a dimly lit basement. A whip and a paddle hung on the wall. A half-empty bowl of water and a bowl of bread scraps lay on the floor near the wall, and in the corner sat the princess.

She looked almost exactly like she had in the photograph, but now it was clear that she was slightly malnourished and skinny. She looked up and stared at the three pirates.

"Hey, you're Erika, right?" Luffy said. When she nodded, he ran forward and scooped her up bridal-style. "Okay, guys, let's go."

"Geez, that jerk really didn't treat her well," Zoro muttered, looking around at the poor conditions.

They ran back up the stairs and met with Sanji by the door. Kevin was just beginning to stir.

"I'll get him," Zoro offered. He grabbed Kevin by an arm and dragged him out the front door roughly.

"Erika-_chan_, are you hurt?" Sanji asked of the princess in Luffy's arms. She lowered her eyes and shook her head.

"Let's get going!" Usopp exclaimed. "Zoro, what're you gonna do with him? Where's Lu—oh, he's already gone."

Luffy had already run ahead with Erika, heading for the docks.

Someone passed by the group, staring at them. Zoro seized him by the shoulder to get his attention. "Hey," he said. "Take this jerk, will you?" He shoved Kevin at the passerby.

"What—what did you do to Kevin!?" the passerby demanded.

"He was keeping a lady locked up in his basement as a slave," Sanji said angrily. "So do us a favor and call the Marines."

"R-Really?" the man said skeptically.

"Just do it!" Sanji snapped. "We're in a hurry! If you don't believe us, check the basement in his house."

Before the man could say another word, the three pirates had run off, leaving the beaten Kevin with him.

* * *

><p>"Let's go!" Luffy exclaimed. "Usopp, Sanji, get the sails! We're gonna go get Nami back!"<p>

The two ran to fix up the sails while Zoro raised the anchor.

Once they had sailed a good distance away from the island, they gathered in the kitchen, where Luffy had set Erika on the couch. She was wearing something like an old blanket, fashioned into a kind of toga. She looked up at them and then lowered her eyes.

"I thought . . . you were Marines," she whispered. "When I heard you talking earlier . . . that's why I left the note. But . . . you're pirates."

"So?" Luffy said. "Hey, are you okay?"

"Of course she's not, dumbass," Sanji snapped. "She's been a slave for—what, ten years?"

"Wait," Usopp said, staring at her. "You think that we're here to make you our slave?"

She nodded slowly.

"Don't be ridiculous," Zoro said. "We don't need a slave. That's what Usopp's for."

"Yeah," Usopp said. "That's what I'm for—Zoro, you jerk, you want a piece of me!?"

Erika looked up cautiously. "You're not . . . making me a slave?"

"No way!" Luffy exclaimed. "We're gonna take you home!"

"Home . . ." she said softly.

"Don't worry, Erika-_chan_," Sanji said, touching her shoulder gently; she flinched and he quickly withdrew his hand. "Would you like to take a bath? We'll get you something else to wear and I'll cook you up a nice meal."

"Here," Usopp said, offering her his hand. She took it and stood up slowly; he led her away to the bathroom while Sanji rolled up his sleeves and went to the stove.


	13. Soup and Explanations! One Last Stop!

Erika, who had finished bathing and changed into some of Nami's clothes (which were slightly large for her), was sitting at the kitchen table quietly. Though she was still obviously malnourished, the bath had done wonders for the dirt on her hair and skin.

"Soup's on!" Sanji exclaimed, pouring her a mug and bringing it to the table. "Eat up, my dear princess."

She cautiously took the spoon and lifted some of the soup to her mouth, sipping it and swallowing slowly.

"It's good," she whispered.

Sanji smiled. "Oh, it makes me so happy to hear that, princess! Take your time with that, my dear."

"I want soup too," Luffy whined. Usopp and Zoro nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, yeah, just a sec," Sanji muttered, going back to the pot and grabbing more mugs.

* * *

><p>Once everyone had finished eating and Sanji had tossed the dishes in the sink to wash later, they all gathered around the table. Princess Erika was still sitting silently.<p>

"Is there anything you want me to do?" she said at last.

"Do?" Zoro said.

"Cleaning the deck," she said. "Washing those dishes . . ."

"Now don't worry about that!" Usopp said sternly. "You're a guest here! We're not gonna make you do any work—right, Luffy?"

"Right," Luffy said firmly.

Erika looked down again. Her eyes filled with tears.

"I . . . how did you find me?" she whispered. "Why were you looking for me? Who are you?"

"We did a bit of sleuthing and found that goddamn trader," Sanji explained. "We beat the shit out of him and found you in that damn book he had."

"Are the kids that he had—are they okay?" she said suddenly, looking up.

"They're back home now," Zoro said.

Erika nodded. "Thank goodness . . ."

"As for why," Usopp said, "long story short, our friend agreed to stand in as princess for you until we found you."

"We're pirates," Luffy said cheerfully. "We're going to the Grand Line after this and I'm gonna be king of the pirates!"

Erika seemed shocked by this and stared at him. "I've heard . . . that that's really hard to do . . . no one's ever done that since the first pirate king, right?"

Luffy grinned. "That's just 'cause I haven't done it yet!"

"Hey, Luffy," Zoro said. "That stupid trader guy . . . Sanji might've beaten him up, but he might recover and keep doing his business, right?"

Luffy frowned and nodded.

"So I was thinking," Zoro continued, "we need to make one more stop before we bring the princess back home . . ."

* * *

><p>"I'm not against this plan," Usopp whimpered. "As long as <em>someone else does it<em>!"

They had docked at an island with a Marine base. Erika had told them the name of the island where the Trader resided.

"We already explained this," Zoro said. "Luffy's got a bounty on his head, he'd probably be recognized right away and we don't have any good disguises on hand. I don't have a poster but they've probably been told to keep an eye out for me too. Erika's our guest so we're not gonna make her do it, and Sanji would probably get distracted by just about any girl that strolled by."

Sanji glared at Zoro but didn't argue the point.

Usopp swallowed. "O-Okay . . . here goes . . ."

He stiffly marched up to the base, attracting a few curious glances from passerby. With a trembling hand he pushed the door open and waited at the entrance.

Not much time had passed before a soldier passed by the entrance. He stopped and stared at Usopp.

". . . Can I help you . . . ?" he asked.

"Y-Yes!" Usopp squeaked. "I-I have information o-on a c-criminal in the East B-Blue, sir!"

"Let's hear it," the Marine said, suddenly in a business-like tone.

Usopp quickly told him about the Trader and his business as well as handing him a piece of paper with that island's name upon it.

"Thank you, son," the Marine said kindly, taking the paper. "I'll get the men on it right away. You've done a good thing."

"Y-Yes, sir," Usopp whispered. "I sh-should get going now bye!"

He promptly turned and ran out back to the ship.

"Done," he said weakly, giving the rest a thumbs-up sign.

"Good job," Sanji said, clapping him on the back. "Let's get going, shall we? Princess Erika-_chan_ needs to get home."

"Set sail!" Luffy exclaimed. "Back to that cool castle! And Nami!"

* * *

><p><strong>One or two more chapters to go<strong>

**[rolls around on floor in excitement, flies]**


	14. To the Castle! Nami's Back at Last!

**Okay . . . we're on the last chapter. Let's go. Yay. [blows noisemaker as quietly as possible]**

* * *

><p>"Maybe we're lost," Luffy said quietly.<p>

"I told you, we're not lost!" Usopp protested. "We just—don't know where we are."

Sanji sighed. "We're lost."

The Strawhats—plus Erika—had found themselves facing a perfectly empty stretch of ocean without the slightest clue of where they had ended up.

"Ah . . ." Usopp said nervously. "You don't suppose we ended up on the Calm Belt again?" He stuck his finger up. "No, wait, the wind's blowing . . ."

"Kay, so we're lost," Luffy repeated.

Erika looked around. "I'm sorry I can't help . . . I don't know anything about navigating."

"No, my dear, don't worry!" Sanji exclaimed. "We'll figure this out sooner or later . . ."

"I'm guessing later, if we keep it up at this rate," Zoro muttered. He was leaning against the railing with his hands behind his head.

"Dammit, Zoro, you _could_ help," Sanji snapped.

"Eh," Zoro said with a shrug. "What the hell do you want me to do about it?"

"Never mind," Sanji muttered, turning his attention back to the map that he and Usopp were poring over.

"The island we're trying to get to—it's called Kopenchagi, right?" Usopp asked, scanning the parchment.

"I think so, yeah," Sanji said. He pointed to a place on the map.

"There it is, but where are we?" Usopp said.

"Yeah, where _are_ we?" Luffy demanded.

* * *

><p>Several minutes of hard work led Sanji and Usopp to deduce that they had ended up in the same stretch of ocean they had been in when Nami was originally kidnapped. From there they were able to figure out roughly which direction the island was.<p>

"To Nami-_swan_!" Sanji cried as they set sail. "And to returning Princess Erika-_chan_!"

"To that cool castle!" Luffy yelled. "And Nami!"

"Seriously, why is Nami the second thing?" Usopp muttered.

Their time sailing to the island seemed to pass in the blink of an eye. Before they knew it, they were docking at the same port as before and jumping off the ship—Sanji helped Erika down.

"Excuse me, sir," said a guard to Zoro as the group made their way out of the docks. "Did you just dock your ship there? Because I must inform you that docking in that particular port is strictly forbidden except for cargo ships. If that's not a cargo ship, I'll have to fine you each a thou—"

Zoro promptly punched the guard in the face. He fell over backwards and did not move.

"What?" he snapped when he noticed the others staring. "It was a hell of a lot faster than trying to explain ourselves."

Luffy shrugged. "Yeah, I guess so. Let's go!"

They continued on their way. Erika, whom Sanji was helpfully holding his arm around, looked at Zoro nervously.

Finally they stood in front of the large double doors of the castle. Without bothering to knock, Luffy shoved open the doors and strode straight into the throne room.

Erika was looking around the throne room in awe. No one had been in sight when the group of five entered, but just before Luffy could yell for Nami, she and the two men came in through a small door behind the throne.

". . . Just saying, you didn't have to spend _that_ much," Larry was saying in an annoyed tone.

"My castle, my rules," Nami said flippantly.

Suddenly John saw the intruding group and cried out in shock. "They're back!" He yelled.

Larry and Nami looked over. Nami's face broke into a grin and both she and the two men rushed over.

"What took you guys so long?" Nami demanded cheerfully as she reached them. "Hey, are those my clothes?"

She pointed to Erika, who jumped. "What?" she whispered. "I . . . I'm sorry . . . these four said I could borrow them . . ."

Nami narrowed her eyes for a moment, but then smirked. "I got more than enough to make up for it, so you can keep it. You're Princess Erika?"

Erika nodded. "I'm sorry, you are . . . ?"

Nami introduced herself and quickly explained the situation she was in. Larry and John went to Erika and began hurriedly checking her over.

"Princess, it's so good to have you back!" Larry cried.

"Your mother and father have missed you so," John exclaimed.

Erika's eyes filled with tears. She knelt and hugged them both. "I'm so sorry for making you all worry," she whispered. "Please, may I . . . see mother and father?"

John and Larry started leading her away, but Nami called after them. "Hey!" she yelled. She pulled the dress over her head and tossed it at them with the tiara, revealing her regular clothes underneath. "You can have those back! And where are my million beris!?"

The two took the dress and tiara but pretended not to hear the last part as they left, shutting the door behind them. Nami sighed, went to the throne, leaned over, and grabbed several packages from behind it.

"Easy come, easy go," she said, tossing the packages at Sanji. "And speaking of which, let's go!"

"You're just going to let a million beris go!?" Usopp exclaimed as the group made their way out.

Nami smirked. "Well, I spent a good amount in town . . ." she pointed to the packages (Sanji was staggering under their weight). "Plus I managed to steal more than that while 'touring' the castle."

She pulled a money bill out from under her skirt and waved it teasingly.

Luffy laughed. "I'm really glad we have you back, Nami!"

Nami grinned. "I'm glad to _be_ back. That castle was so boring."

"Yeah, and we found out that we _really_ need you for navigating," Usopp muttered.

"How _did_ you guys make it?" Nami asked with a small frown.

"A lot of guessing, really," Zoro admitted. "The only thing we really learned was where the sun sets."

"The west?" Nami asked.

Usopp smirked.

They got to the ship; Usopp helped Sanji bring up the packages while Luffy, Zoro, and Nami prepared to leave.

"Ah, Princess Nami," Sanji said with hearts in his eyes, "your mere presence on our ship is like a beacon of purest light! How I missed having you on—"

"Don't call me 'princess'," Nami snapped. "Set sail!"

"Yes, ma'am!" Sanji and Usopp exclaimed.

"Let's go!" Luffy yelled. "To the Grand Line!"

* * *

><p>~Fin~<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Secret message FTW<strong>

**I'm gonna be honest, I don't actually like this story much. If you liked it, great! I appreciate it! Frankly I'm just glad to move on from this story, though.**

**Story's done! Thank you for all your support, minna-sama~!**


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